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Rancho Santa Fe gets 2010 state amateur

By: MARC FIGUEROA - Staff Writer | Tuesday, January 29, 2008 10:37 PM PST ∞

The California Amateur Championship, held almost exclusively at Pebble Beach since its inception in 1912, will be played at Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club in 2010, marking the first time the state golf tournament will be held in San Diego County.

The 7,035-yard, par-72 layout has hosted a number of prestigious events since it opened in 1929, including the 1954 San Diego Open won by Gene Littler, the 2000 SCGA Amateur and the 2006 U.S. Junior Amateur. Bing Crosby held his annual pro-am "clambake" at the private club from 1937-42.

"We're very proud to get to host this event," said the club's general manager Steve Nordstrom. "It speaks a lot to the quality of the golf club. Knowing that Pebble Beach has been a host for so many years, we're glad to be among that company. We're looking forward to it."

The California Amateur is one of the nation's oldest state amateurs. From 1919-2006 it was played at Pebble Beach, except for 2000 when Pebble Beach hosted the U.S. Open.

The California Golf Association decided last year to start rotating the event between Northern California and Southern California. In 2007, the event was held in Monterey. This year's event will take place June 16-21 at Lakeside Golf Club in Toluca Lake and Oakmont Country Club in Glendale.

In 2009, the event moves to Lake Merced just south of San Francisco.

Bob Thomas, the senior director of communications for the Southern California Golf Association, said rising costs and a packed tournament schedule at Pebble Beach made it increasingly difficult to stage the state amateur at the famed seaside course.

"We just didn't feel like it was being treated like a championship event," Thomas said. "This now is going to be a true state amateur rather than the Pebble Beach Amateur.

"Nobody was thrilled to leave Pebble Beach, but the flip side is we're thrilled it's moving around to different parts of the state."

The 36-hole stroke-play portion of the tournament that leads into match play traditionally is played on two courses and Thomas said Rancho Santa Fe's partnering course could be named as early as this week.

Many of the game's great players have claimed California Amateur titles, including Littler, Ken Venturi, Mark O'Meara, and Johnny Miller. California native Tiger Woods advanced as far as the semifinals in 1994, but never won it.

Contact staff writer Marc Figueroa at marcfig@aol.com.